Kennedys Law

Kennedys Law LLP

Headquarters	London, EC3 United Kingdom
No. of offices	75 offices, associations and co-operations in 37 countries
No. of employees	2750
Major practice areas	Insurance and reinsurance, Litigation, Healthcare, Maritime and international trade, Employment, Banking and finance, Insolvency and corporate recovery, Real estate, Contracts
Key people	Nick Thomas (Senior Partner) Suzanne Liversidge (Global Managing Partner) Matt Andrews (APAC Regional Managing Partner) John Bruce (Partner) Meg Catalano (US Regional Managing Partner)
Revenue	£384 million (2023/24)
Date founded	1899 (London)
Company type	Limited liability partnership
Website	www.kennedyslaw.com

Kennedys Law LLP is an international commercial law firm specializing in insurance, dispute resolution, and advisory services. In 2023/24, the firm increased its total global revenue by 17% to £384 million (US $483 million). Kennedys has offices in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, France, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Mexico, New Zealand, Oman, Peru, Singapore, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Specialities

Kennedys has a deep-rooted expertise in insurance claims and coverage across its global network. The firm provides advice in all lines, including:

• Aviation
• Marine and Energy
• Property and Casualty: Property damage, contractors all risk, employers' liability, public liability, product liability
• Medical Malpractice
• Motor Liability
• Financial Lines: Directors' and officers' liability, financial institutions, professional indemnity
• Specialty Risks: Cyber, fine art and specie, political risks, life and health

Kennedys also advises clients on commercial dispute resolution, company and commercial law, corporate recovery, employment, environment, health and safety, fraud, and regulatory defence.

History

Founded in London in 1899 and named after partner Charles Frederick Kennedy, Kennedys operated from a single location until 1988, when it opened a Brentwood office to handle contentious litigation for East Anglia insurers.

Key milestones include:

• 1996: Opened Belfast office
• 2008: Merged with Davies Lavery, acquiring offices in Birmingham and Maidstone
• 2010: Established the Miami office, marking initial presence in North America and setting the stage for future expansion and associations in Latin America
• 2013: Merged with aviation specialist firm Gates and Partners, adding 70 employees and a Brussels office
• 2015: Formed a joint law venture with Legal Solutions LLC in Singapore, resulting in the creation of Kennedys Legal Solutions
• 2016: Merged with Danish firm Advokatfirmaet Erritzøe, acquiring a Copenhagen office
• 2016: Merged with marine and shipping law firm Waltons & Morse
• 2017: Merged with US insurance law firm Carroll McNulty & Kull (CMK), expanding US practice
• 2017: Merged with commercial disputes firm berg, enhancing global commercial litigation
• 2018: Formed an association with Israeli insurance law specialists Zelichov, Ben-Dan & Co, leading to the opening of an office in Israel.

Between 2017-2023, Kennedys opened offices in Mexico City, Melbourne, Bangkok, Buenos Aires, Paris, Bermuda, Bristol, San Francisco, Israel, Oman, Perth, Leeds, Wilmington, Brisbane, Houston, Newcastle and Fort Lauderdale and became the first international law firm with a presence in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, and Panama through associations.

In 2019, Suzanne Liversidge was appointed as Kennedys' first global managing partner. The firm launched Kennedys IQ in 2020, a technology-driven company combining human and machine intelligence.

From 2020 to 2023, Kennedys formed associations with:

• Dolden Wallace Folick LLP in Canada
• Baysal & Demir in Turkey
• Lopez del Solar in Bolivia
• Tobar ZVS in Ecuador
• PALM Legal in Portugal
• Next Advokater in Sweden
• AZ Cardoso Advogados (AZC) in Brazil

Recent awards

2024

• Claims Team of the Year at the British Claims Awards 2024
• Best Law Firm for Partner Approachability by Legal Cheek
• Cyber Law Firm of the Year at Cyber Insurance Europe Awards and Intelligent Insurer Cyber Insurance Europe Awards 2024

2023

• Technology Partner of the Year (Insurance Times Tech and Innovation Awards)
• Impact Case of the Year (LMG Life Sciences Awards EMEA) for Hastings v Finsbury Orthopaedics Ltd and Stryker LTD 2022 case
• Cyber Risk Lawyer of the Year (Zywave Cyber Risk Awards Gala)
• Technology Partner of the Year Bronze winner (Insurance Times Tech and Innovation Awards)